The Seoul market publishes no price list, so this guide sets out 2026 day-rate ranges by mode and domain as market observations, not as MetaPret's prices.
As of
Author: Paul Dahoon Kim (Founder, MetaPret. Working Korean-English interpreter, ~100 engagements)
Last updated: 2026-06-02
Read time: ~6 minutes
Summary: There is no public price list in the interpretation market. This guide lays out what the Seoul market broadly charges in 2026, escort, consecutive, simultaneous, and whisper day-rate ranges by domain, the five factors that move price, and how to read a quote. These are market figures, not MetaPret's prices.
Why there is no public price list
Under conventional interpreter sourcing, any intermediary margin is bundled into a single rate rather than itemized, and interpreters contracted directly quote per engagement, so buyers rarely have a benchmark for whether a quote is reasonable. The ranges below are market context, what the Seoul market broadly charges, by interpretation type and engagement weight, collected from market data and a working interpreter's experience. They are NOT MetaPret's prices. MetaPret quotes per project (see the close at the end).
By interpretation type (Seoul market, per day)
Escort / liaison interpretation (one interpreter accompanying meetings, factory visits, dinners):
- General business: KRW 400,000–700,000 / day (8 hrs)
- Domain-specialized (legal / medical / finance): KRW 600,000–1,200,000 / day
- Senior-experience, high-difficulty domains: KRW 1,000,000–1,800,000 / day
Consecutive interpretation (speaker pauses, interpreter follows; meetings, negotiations, interviews):
- General business meetings: KRW 500,000–900,000 / day
- M&A / IR / legal: KRW 900,000–1,800,000 / day
- Senior-experience, high-difficulty: KRW 1,500,000–2,500,000 / day
Simultaneous interpretation (near real-time; conferences, multilingual events, always a team of 2+, per interpreter):
- General conference: KRW 1,000,000–1,800,000 / day
- Medical / scientific conference: KRW 1,500,000–2,500,000 / day
- Senior / AIIC-member level: KRW 2,000,000–3,500,000 / day
- As a 2-person team, one language pair, one day: roughly KRW 2,000,000–5,000,000, with booth equipment a separate KRW 800,000–1,500,000 / day.
Whisper interpretation (chuchotage; 1–2 listeners, interpreter beside them):
- KRW 1,000,000–2,000,000 / day (cognitive load is close to simultaneous, so it is priced similarly).
Market averages (Seoul, one day)
| Engagement type | Market range (Seoul, 1 day) |
|---|---|
| Business meeting accompaniment | KRW 500,000–900,000 |
| Executive visit accompaniment | KRW 700,000–1,400,000 |
| M&A negotiation / IR meeting | KRW 1,000,000–2,000,000 |
| Medical / legal domain | KRW 900,000–1,800,000 |
| Conference simultaneous (team of 2) | KRW 2,500,000–4,500,000 |
| Whisper interpretation | KRW 1,000,000–2,000,000 |
| Factory visit / industrial site | KRW 700,000–1,300,000 |
Outside Seoul (Busan, Daejeon, etc.): the ranges above plus travel cost (KTX round-trip roughly KRW 100,000, plus roughly KRW 100,000 if an overnight is needed). Overseas: the ranges above plus airfare, hotel, and a travel-day charge customarily billed at 50% of the day rate.
The five things that move price
The same interpretation type can vary 1.5–3x with five factors:
- Domain specialization: legal / medical / finance / M&A specialists command roughly 30–80% more than general business, because fewer interpreters can carry the domain vocabulary.
- Timing: evenings add roughly 30–50%, weekends and holidays 50–100%, same-day / sub-24-hour requests 30–80%.
- City / travel: Seoul is the base; other cities add travel cost, and overseas adds airfare, hotel, and a 50% travel-day charge.
- Experience level: market price reacts strongly to seniority, though years alone do not guarantee skill, which is exactly why MetaPret tests rather than assumes.
- Booking channel: under conventional interpreter sourcing, any intermediary margin sits on top of the interpreter's pay and is usually bundled into one rate rather than itemized, so the quote does not show how much reaches the interpreter.
How MetaPret prices, and why these numbers aren't ours
The ranges above are market context, not a MetaPret price list. MetaPret quotes per project: one all-in quote per engagement, shown before you confirm the match. The written quote shows the interpreter's pay and the MetaPret fee as separate figures. And the interpreter you are matched with has passed a scored, per-engagement test for that exact engagement. MetaPret does not skip verification to chase a lower number. Tell us the engagement type, domain, schedule, and city at metapret.net/request and a quote comes back fast.